Switch
by Athena's Marauder
Summary: As a teenager, Sam Winchester made a mistake that got him taken from his brother and father. It got him the regular life that he had wanted. He got to pretend to be an average kid. For a while. Years later, he's called back to the sleepy town of Stars Hollow when an old friend is in trouble.
1. Chapter 1

**September 2000**

The backpack on his shoulders felt heavier than it should. He thought it might be the guilt that weighed it down rather than the actual articles of clothing. Sam stared at the back of the social worker who had been assigned to his case. Normally he was great with names, but hers escaped him. To his credit, when she had introduced herself, she had also been taking him away from his brother and father. He wanted to blame her, curse at her like Dean had, but he knew she was just doing her job. If anyone was to blame, it was him.

"You ready, Sam?" The social worker said, coming back down the steps from the decently sized house. The only places this nice that he had been to had all been haunted. From what he could tell from the drive in, Stars Hollow was a quiet, sleepy town.

"Not really," Sam said. He had hit his growth spurt over the last year and he towered over the social worker. She had clearly met her fair share of children; she looked up at him in a no nonsense way that made him feel like he was still that same tiny kid he had been just a few years before.

"We were lucky to find your father's cousin here," The social worker said. "A lot of children end up with strangers."

"I've never met this people in my life," Sam said, his eyes darting up to the faces of the nice, suburban family that matched the nice, suburban home. "They might as well be strangers."

"Sam, I'm sorry you had to leave your brother and your father, but the Foresters are nice people," She assured.

"Nice people I had to be dragged to Connecticut to stay with," Sam said. He squeezed the shoulder straps of his backpack. He wasn't usually so argumentative. That was Dean's job.

The social worker pursed her lips at him, clutching the binder to her chest that he was sure contained his case file. "From what I understand, you're used to being dragged around."

"That's different," Sam snapped back.

"Sam, I know this is frustrating," The social worker sighed. "But you know that my job is to do what's best for you." Sam scoffed. "Now, let's go."

Sam trudged up the steps behind the social worker. The pleasant family consisted of a brunette wife and blonde husband and daughter, a girl who looked to be about ten. Judging by the pictures on the wall, it looked like there was an older daughter as well.

"It's nice to have you here, Sam," The mother said with a reassuring smile. Sam was sure that in any other circumstance, he would love to be in this comfortable home, the smell of freshly baked cookies coming from the kitchen and a kind faced mother welcoming him, but right now, he wanted nothing more to be back in the ratty motel that he had been in with Dean and John. "I'm May, and this is Randy, and Clara."

"Hi," Sam said, looking anywhere but May's eyes.

"You look just like John when he was your age," May said. "That's about the last time I saw him, actually."

"I'll let you get settled in here, Sam," The social worker said. "You have my card in case you need anything."

Dean's voice in his head told him to say he needed to go back home, but Sam bit back any snide comment. He nodded to the social worker and watched as she climbed back into her car and drove off, stranding him in Nowhere, Connecticut.

"Sorry for the mess," Randy said, drawing Sam's attention back to the family. "We actually just moved here ourselves. You got here at the right time, school starts back up tomorrow."

"If you want to just put your stuff down, we can actually head over to the school," May said. "I think Nicole said she got you registered already, but you have to just fill out some papers for your classes." He knew he didn't really have much say in the matter, so Sam merely nodded. "Great, I'll show you upstairs to your room."

Sam followed May up the stairs to a bedroom that had clearly been made up with a typical teenage boy in mind: a tv on the dresser and sports posters on the wall. Sam guessed the dad may have been tired of only having a feminine presence around the house. He wondered how he would break it to him that Sam wasn't a sports guy either.

"It's actually not that cold out," May said, pointing to the leather jacket Sam wore, the one his brother had made him take as the social worker was making Sam pack up his things in the motel room. "New England is pretty mild in the late summer, actually."

Sam dropped his backpack on the twin bed and shoved his hands into the pockets of his brother's jacket. He could feel the silver pocket knife John had slipped in there as well, the smooth handle acting as a sort of talisman for Sam as he ran his thumb across it. "I'm good," Sam said.

May gave him a sympathetic smile, one that was meant as a comforting gesture, but it made Sam feel sick. "I know you don't want to be here, Sam, but please know I want you to feel like this is your home too."

"I'm not going to be here long," Sam assured, parroting what his father had told him. "My dad isn't a bad guy."

May reached out and touched his shoulder, looking up at him with pity in her eyes. "I know he's not Sam. I knew your dad when we were kids. I think he just took your mother's death really hard."

"He's not crazy," Sam defended.

"I don't think he is," May said. "And you know, your brother is more than welcome to come and stay here with us as well. You're both family."

"I won't be here long," Sam repeated. "Can we just go?"

May looked like she wanted to say more to him but decided against it. He felt bad as he followed her back down the stairs and out the door. It was almost like he was channeling his older brother's snarky attitude in the elder Winchester boy's absence.

Sam knew that Stars Hollow was small town, but he didn't realize that the school was in walking distance. This would be the kind of town he would have begged John to let them stay in. John wouldn't allow it because small towns are gossip mills and were impossible to stay anonymous in. Even though May hadn't been there that long either, everyone waved to her, asking her how her day was going. They all casted Sam curious looks, but waved to him as well.

"Friendly," Sam noted as they passed the sixth eager townsperson, a woman with wild eyes and even wilder blonde curls.

"Everyone knows everyone and we're new," May said. "Talk of the town."

"Yeah," Sam snorted. "They probably think I'm trouble."

"And why do you think that?" May asked.

"I've been in foster homes before this," Sam said. "Everyone always thinks the kids are bad news."

"I won't tell them if you won't," May said with a shrug. Sam hadn't noticed before, but she had his dad's eyes. He wondered how close May and John had been as kids. Why they hadn't talked after John joined the service. "Do you want a coffee?" She asked as they approached what looked like a diner from what he saw of the inside, but according to the sign, it was a hardware store.

"I'll wait out here if it's alright," Sam said. May ducked into the crowded diner, again bombarded with greetings from cheery townsfolk. The man at the counter, a scruffy guy with a backwards cap and a flannel, eyed him through the window. Sam chuckled a little to himself as he realized the man looked a lot like John. Even John's doppelganger didn't seem to like Sam much.

He leaned against the side of the diner, surveying what he could see of the town from where he stood. He didn't think he would be there very long, but his dad drilled into him from an early age that you should know your surroundings.

His eyes landed on a pretty girl coming out of the bookstore across the street. Her hair was long and in her face as she kept her focus trained on the book in her arms as she walked towards him, headphones over her ears. Sam was almost too distracted to notice the car coming towards her as she stepped off into the street. The driver was preoccupied with his car radio to see her either.

"Hey!" Sam yelled, going towards the girl. She didn't look up, still walking into the street. Sam cursed under his breath as he broke into a run, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her onto the sidewalk just in time for the car to run passed the stop sign right where the girl had been.

"Oh!" The girl said in surprise as she seemed to just notice where she was. Her headphones slipped off her head as she looked up at Sam.

Sam searched for something coherent to say, but he was distracted by her wide, blue eyes that looked more like glass as she gaped at him. He tried to remember every trick Dean taught him about talking to beautiful girls.

"Hi," Sam said finally.

"You just saved my life," The girl said. "Because I walked into the street like an idiot."

"Rory!" A woman yelled across the street from the doorway of the market, just as the diner guy came outside, also flustered, followed shortly by May.

"What the hell was that, Rory?" The man said, grabbing the girl from Sam and checking her over. He hadn't realized he had still had his arms around her. "Are you okay? You coulda been killed. I'm gonna wring Kurt's neck."

The woman ran across the street towards them. Sam was struck by how much she looked like the girl, who he assumed was Rory, with the same striking blue eyes. The woman was younger, maybe in her early thirties, but he figured these must be her parents by how they were hugging her and making her look embarrassed.

"I wasn't looking where I was going," Rory said.

"I'll say that's for damn sure," The woman said, finally releasing her. "Thank god for Young Clark Kent over here." The man seemed to just notice Sam there. He looked him up and down, finally giving him an approving nod. "We don't know you," The woman said bluntly. She didn't sound mistrusting, just curious.

"Oh, yeah," Sam said, his flashing to May as he remembered what she said. _I won't tell them if you won't._ "I just moved here."

The man looked over to May and back to Sam. "You the Foresters' kid?" He asked. Sam nodded.

"Well, thank you for saving my space case daughter," The woman said. "I'm Lorelai, and this way with words is Luke."

"Dean," Sam said without thinking. He thought May would say something by the look on her face but she held her tongue. Sam didn't even know why he lied. He hadn't really felt like himself ever since the social worker had taken him from his family a few days before, but lying about his identity wasn't usually his thing unless he was talking to cops. And he especially didn't pretend to be his brother.

"What do you say to nice, cute boys who pull you out of the street, Rory," Lorelai said.

"Mom," Rory hissed. Her face burned red as she shoved her mother away from her. She looked back up at Sam. "Thank you."

"No problem," Sam said, shoving his hands back into his pockets. He looked at May where she had stayed quietly away from the action this whole time. "We have to go."

"That coffee is on the house," Luke said to her as she handed one of the to go cups to Sam.

"Oh, so he gets free coffee," Lorelai said as she stirred Rory into the diner after Luke.

"I'll give you free coffee if you can stay quiet for more than five minutes, Lorelai," Sam heard Luke say as Sam and May started back on the sidewalk.

"Well, you're having an exciting first day in Stars Hollow, Dean," May said pointedly. When Sam didn't say anything, choosing to nurse his coffee instead, May pressed on. "Isn't that your older brother's name?"

"It's a joke we have," Sam lied.

"Ah," May said, clearly not believing him.

"Is it cool if you just call me that, actually," Sam said, again without thinking. Maybe it was that his brother had always been better with pretty girls and pretending to be him was easier than being himself when one approached him or maybe it was just that he wanted a part of Dean there. Maybe it was both. He had always wanted to be just like his older brother. Even just wearing his old jacket and adopting his sarcastic attitude made him feel a little less alone.

"Whatever you'd like, sweetie," May said.

 _I'm not going to be here long,_ Sam said to himself. _Nothing wrong with being someone else for a while._


	2. Chapter 2

**March 2012**

Sam pressed a cold bottle of beer to the bruise forming on his eye as he got into the passenger side of the Impala. He winced into the iciness. He really needed to work on his ducking. Being walloped by a ghost of a little girl wasn't exactly his idea of a good time, but Dean had found it hilarious.

"How's the shiner, Sammy?" Dean asked with a smirk. He didn't even look up from the open computer sitting on his lap.

"Feels great. It'll be even better after I have this," Sam said. "You're not looking at porn in the car, are you? I feel like there needs to be a line."

"Got a case," Dean said. Sam sighed loudly. "What?"

"Dean, this has been nonstop," Sam said. "We need time to sleep once in a while. We need a break. Hell, I'll even let you go to a strip club. Let's just hold off for a bit."

"First off, 'let me'? I'm a full grown man, I'll go to strip clubs whenever the hell I want," Dean said, earning an eye roll from Sam. "And second, monsters don't take a break so neither do we."

"This was our sixth case with no in between," Sam argued.

"And?"

"And there are other hunters who can handle cases, Dean," Sam said. "I have Bobby's whole contact list. We'll send someone that way and we can spend a whole weekend not getting thrown around by ghosts."

"We're the best there is and you know it," Dean said.

"Yeah, and I got my ass beat last week by a second class demon because I'm tired as hell," Sam said.

"You need more practice then," Dean argued. Sam fixed him with an exasperated look. "Come on, Sammy. There are some missing girls in Connecticut. You love New England girls."

"When have I ever said that?" Sam laughed.

"Doesn't matter," Dean waved him off. "We're only a state over, we've gotta be the closest ones and there's two missing already."

Sam twisted the lid off of his beer bottle, sighing as he took a heavy swig. "Fine, let's go." Dean clenched his fist triumphantly. He slammed the laptop shut, placing it in the back before pulling out of the gas station parking lot.

"What's the deal with the girls then, why do you think it's our sort of thing?" Sam asked.

"Their families said they had been acting strange before dropping contact all together," Dean said.

"Shape shifter, maybe," Sam said.

"Could be," Dean said. "They usually go for the higher class people, take their money and stuff like that. These girls were educated, came from old family money."

"It's Connecticut, everyone comes from family money," Sam said. Dean chuckled with little humor.

"Right, right, I forgot you did a stint there, huh?"

Sam felt his cheeks turn a bit red. He and Dean never really mentioned the two years he spent with the Foresters. It was a hard time for Dean. Especially because not long after Sam got back to his family, he left for Stanford. Sam was sure he hadn't forgotten.

"It was a bunch of spoiled little rich kids," Sam covered.

"No wonder you got into the Ivy leagues then," Dean said.

"Is there anything else," Sam asked, changing the subject. "Any sketchy new people in their lives, cults joined, stuff like that?"

"The first girl had some guy she was seeing for a while that the family didn't like but he just seems like run of the mill bad choice to piss off her parents. You know, motorcycle, bartender, the works. He was the one who reported her missing, though, so I don't think he has anything to do with it."

"We'll check him out anyways," Sam said. "What about the second?"

"Her parents tried to report her missing a couple days ago, but because she's in her late twenties, the cops wouldn't have it until she didn't show up for work Monday," Dean said. "The mom said that she hadn't called in a week and then didn't show up for a scheduled dinner, so that's when she knew something happened."

"Sounds fishy, sure," Sam nodded.

"We got a few hours ahead of us," Dean said. "Why don't you get some sleep, I'll wake you up when we get there."

 _The ceiling of Sam's room was starting to look a lot like a hole that he was falling down. He could smell the warm vanilla scent of freshly baked cake coming through the vents, but even that didn't make him want to come out. He knew he was being a bit dramatic, but he thought he had earned it._

 _The cellphone on his bedside table chirped loudly. Sam heaved himself up and put the phone to his ear. "I don't want to talk," He said roughly._

" _Too bad, Sammy," The gruff voice on the other end said. Sam felt his chest tighten._

" _Dean?" Sam said. "You guys are okay? You haven't called in weeks. Uncle Bobby was out looking for you."_

" _I know, I'm sorry, we had a bad run for a bit," Dean explained. "Dad's fine, I'm fine."_

" _Where are you guys?" Sam asked._

" _That's the good news," Dean said. Sam hadn't heard him that happy in years. "We're in Hartford."_

" _What?"_

" _Your birthday's tomorrow, numbnuts," Dean said. "Eighteen, they can't do a damn thing if you leave. You're coming home, Sammy."_

 _The pit in Sam's stomach that had weighed on him for days now felt even deeper. He missed his brother and father, but the life he had in Stars Hollow was all he had ever wanted. Well, it was until yesterday._

" _Sammy?" Dean said._

" _Yeah, I'm still here," Sam said._

" _Well, pack your bags," Dean said. "Dad and I will be there tomorrow at dawn. I know you got your school and everything, but if you're eighteen you can pull yourself out, you can finish up somewhere else. You've got like, what, a month left?"_

" _Dean, I can't just pick up and leave," Sam said, without thinking._

" _Why the hell not?" Dean asked. "We do it all the time."_

" _I've been here almost two years."_

" _Yeah, and it's been hell being apart, we're a family, Sammy. Families are supposed to be together."_

 _Sam pressed his hand to his forehead, nodding. "You're right, I know."_

" _Well then, what is it?" Dean asked. He paused for a long moment. "Is this because of that girl you told me about? Rory, or whatever?"_

" _You mean my girlfriend," Sam said, putting salt into his own wound._

" _I'm sure she's real cute, Sammy, but you can find other girls."_

" _It's not because of her," Sam said. "We broke up anyways."_

" _Dean, it's time for dinner," May called up the stairs. Sam ran his hand through his hair, squeezing the strands at the nape of his neck. He looked at the pictures he kept on his bedside table. A photostrip of him and Rory at the fall carnival last year, the last frame of her kissing him. Another, picture of him, Randy, Clara, and May, a cheesy one that he was sure Dean would make fun of mercilessly. The last, an old picture of Sam and Dean with their mother and father, not long after Sam was born. Sam had always kept it with him, usually in whatever book he was reading, but May had placed it in a frame for him not long after Sam arrived at the Forester house._

" _Sammy?" Dean asked._

" _Yeah," Sam said. Sam grabbed the three photos and got up from his bed. He grabbed his backpack and threw them into the bottom. "I'll see you tomorrow."_

"Wake up, Sleeping Beauty," Dean said, slapping Sam's shoulder roughly. Sam blinked up blearily, looking around the cab of the Impala.

"Where are we?" Sam asked. He felt immediately awake as he took in his surroundings. He thought for a moment that Dean was playing a cruel joke on him as he stared at the closed sign of the diner that proclaimed it was a hardware store. "Dean, where are we?"

"Stars Hollow," Dean said. He didn't seem to notice Sam's anxiety.

"That's not funny, Dean," Sam said. Dean finally looked up at him, his eyebrows knit together at him.

"What?" Dean asked. After a moment he laughed a little. "Oh, right, this is where you lived, huh?"

"You know this is where I lived, Dean," Sam said, annoyed.

"I didn't even think about it, do you know how many small ass towns there are in Connecticut, I don't remember which ones you played house in," Dean said. "We're just here because people went missing and we gotta find them. You know, our jobs? We gotta talk to the girls' parents, so get your shit together. The dad owns this diner, he said he'd meet us outside."

Sam stared at the darkened windows of the diner, knowing even after ten years that it should be open at this time of day. Dean looked over Sam's face.

"What's up, Sam?"

Sam watched as the sullen diner owner walked out of the front door, still in the same baseball cap and worn flannel combo that Sam had remembered him in. His eyes were red, his insomnia clear on his scruffy face as he stood outside in the brisk New England morning air, waiting on what he thought would be FBI agents.

"Dean, who went missing?" Sam asked, already knowing the answer.

"Michaela Rogers and Lorelai Gilmore," Dean said, still looking at Sam's face with concern. "Why? Did you know them or something when you were here?"

The diner owner made eye contact just as Sam nodded in answer to Dean's question. He narrowed his eyes at Sam, his face drawing in confusion.

"Dean?" Luke asked.


	3. Chapter 3

Dean got out of the car while Sam stayed frozen in the passenger seat, caught like a deer in the headlights under Luke's gaze.

"Mr. Danes?" Dean asked, pulling out his phony FBI badge. "I'm Agent Harrison, that's my partner, Agent Hamill."

Luke finally tore his eyes from Sam, looking at Dean with a face that had gone from distraught to annoyed. "No, you aren't."

"Excuse me?" Dean said. A life of lying to pretty much anyone he spoke to made it easy to play it cool when he was actually trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

"I don't know what you're playing at, but I can tell you that knucklehead isn't FBI," Luke said, pointing his finger at Sam. "That's my girl's old boyfriend. What are you playing at, Forester?"

Sam finally stepped out of the car, looking from Luke to Dean. "Luke, listen-,"

"You dipped out ten years ago, and now Rory's missing, you show up?" Luke said, stepping towards Sam. "What's the big idea here?"

"Whoa, whoa," Dean said, putting his hands up. "We just came to town, he's got nothing to do with your daughter going missing, man. We're here to help."

A woman with dark brown hair and icy blue eyes stepped out of the diner, her cheeks looking gaunt like she hadn't slept or eaten in days. Dean figured this was the man's wife. "Dean?" She asked, but again, the name was directed at Sam.

"Hi, Lorelai," Sam said, sheepishly.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, holding her thick sweater tightly around herself as if trying to physically keep herself together. She didn't seem as angry as her husband about Sam being there.

"I was just asking him that," Luke said.

"I heard about Rory," Sam said quickly.

"And?" Luke asked. Lorelai placed her hand on his shoulder, visibly calming him as if she had flipped a switch.

"It's been a long time, Dean," Lorelai said.

Sam shot Dean a look and Dean knew enough to keep quiet, for now. "I know, I'm sorry," Sam said. "But I'm just here to help. This is my cousin, Bobby. He's a private investigator."

"I thought you said you were FBI," Luke said.

"Folks trust government more than PIs," Dean lied easily. He wished he knew what he was lying to cover. He had avoided asking Sam about his stay in Connecticut for the last decade. It had always bothered him that while he had missed his little brother every day that he was gone those two years, Sam had seemed almost sad to be back with Dean and John.

"We don't need any help from you, Forester," Luke said firmly.

"Luke, stop," Lorelai said. "What'd the kid ever do to you? Bag your groceries wrong? Calm down."

"He punched my nephew for one," Luke said. Lorelai rolled her eyes.

"And you pushed Jess in a lake. No offense, but your nephew is a very punchable guy."

"You punched a kid?" Dean asked under his breath, raising an eyebrow at his brother. Dean would be impressed if this were any other time. Sam elbowed him.

"Let's go inside," Lorelai said, waving them into the building. Dean didn't know how welcome they were by the glare of the diner owner, but he and Sam followed Lorelai inside.

"I wish it were a better time," Lorelai said as she went behind the counter, grabbing three mugs and pouring fresh coffee in. "But it's really nice to see you, Dean."

"It's good to see you too, Lorelai," Sam said, taking the coffee from her.

"You're gonna shake out of your skin if you drink anymore," Luke said, coming behind the counter.

"And you're going to lose a hand if you try and take it from me," Lorelai said without breaking eye contact with Sam. Sam didn't seem phased by the couple's banter so Dean figured this must be normal.

"You guys got married, finally," Sam said, nodding to Lorelai's hand. She smiled gently, wrapping her hands around the mug.

"Yeah, about two years ago. We needed someone to kill the spiders after you left us high and dry," Lorelai said.

"I'm sorry I didn't say bye or anything," Sam said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I wouldn't really expect you to, I'm your ex girlfriend's mom," Lorelai said. "We did really miss you around. Rory especially, obviously."

Sam looked as if he wanted to say something but held his tongue. Dean had always been curious about what happened with Sam and his high school girlfriend. When they had dated, Dean heard about her nonstop when Sam would call. Dean was more than happy to give him advice on how to get the girl. Then Sam said they had broken up and that was the end. Sam wasn't offering up any information and Dean didn't ask.

"Your mom said you went back to Chicago-,"

Dean didn't hear the rest of the woman's trip down memory lane. _Mom._ Dean didn't really care about Sam lying, no matter how odd the lies were, but she had said "mom". Sam didn't just have a life in this tiny town, he had had a family. John and Dean had tried their damnedest to get Sam back to them and now more than ever, Dean felt like maybe Sam hadn't really even wanted to come back.

"Can I talk to you outside for a minute, _Dean,_ " Dean said sharply, tugging Sam's arm in a way that told Sam he didn't really have a choice.

Dean pulled him along outside, resisting the urge to slam the door behind him. "Dean, look-," Sam started, only to be cut off by Dean shaking his head.

"Sorry, I thought you were Dean now," Dean said. Sam tightened his jaw, annoyed with his older brother's immaturity. "Explain. Now."

"I was sixteen, okay?" Sam said. "I didn't want to be here, I was in a strange place where I didn't know anyone."

"And you figured you'd just bullshit yourself a new life?" Dean said. "What else don't I know about you? You got a kid somewhere?"

"I wanted to be you."

"What?" Dean said, pulling back slightly.

"I was scared. I was by myself. We'd been in foster homes before, but always together," Sam explained. "I just thought about what you would do and it kind of...got out of hand, obviously."

"So you just...became me?"

"Not exactly," Sam said, pushing his hand through his shaggy hair. "It was stupid, I know."

"You didn't even tell this girl?" Dean said. "From what I remember you were head over heels for her. You just lied to her the whole time."

"Not about everything," Sam defended.

"Do you think whatever it is that took her could be coming after you?" Dean asked. "That's happened before."

"I haven't talked to her since I left," Sam said.

The boys halted their discussion as soon as the door to the diner swung open again, Luke stepping out with his wife close behind him.

"Listen," Luke said, fidgeting with his hat uncomfortably. "The police aren't doing much right now. If you think you can find Rory, we want your help."


	4. Chapter 4

" _What about this one?" Rory asked, holding up a faded copy of Fahrenheit 451. "This is a classic."_

" _Never heard of it," Sam lied. He smirked slightly at Rory's aghast face. He had read the book years ago. His fifth grade teacher had been very impressed, but John was mostly annoyed Sam was paying more attention to a book than his lesson on what to do if faced with a ghoul. Sam just liked how excited Rory got when he came back to her a week later with a "newly" finished favourite book of hers._

" _You have to read it," Rory said, adding it to the already sky high pile in his arms. This was the routine any time they spent the day at the bookstore. After nearly two years with Rory, Sam was used to it. It was his favourite way to spend his day._

" _I don't think I can carry any more," Sam laughed. Rory looked up at him with her wide crystal blue stare. And Dean thought Sam had a puppy dog look. "Don't worry, I'll just go set these up at the counter. We'll get a second load."_

" _Find me by the poetry," Rory said, standing on her toes to kiss Sam's cheek before running off to the other side of the tiny store._

 _Sam made his way to the front, leaving the mountain of paperbacks with Kurt, who was also familiar with the drill when it came to Rory and her book obsession. Sam was just glad things had gotten back to normal with Rory. He figured it must just be everything with her finals that was setting her on edge, but she had barely any time for him as of late. On top of that, any time she had seen him, she seemed distant and annoyed with him. He was happy to get the call that morning when she asked him to come along with her to the annual end of the school year sale at the Stars Hollow bookstore._

 _He took his time wandering back over to his girlfriend, looking at a few of the books for himself._

" _Jess, stop," Sam heard Rory's voice from a few aisles over. He dropped the book he was holding back onto the shelf and headed towards the poetry section in the back of the store. He was unsurprised but still enraged by the sight of Jess Mariano standing with his hand firmly on Rory's upper arm, Rory's eyes already filling with tears._

 _Sam mostly tried to avoid Jess at school, which wasn't too hard now that Jess had all but dropped out. The boys didn't have the friendliest of relationships, especially after Rory had told Sam how uncomfortable Jess made her by flirting with her any chance he got._

" _Back off, dude," Sam said, pulling Jess back roughly by the shoulder. Jess lost his footing, stumbling back into the shelf behind him._

" _Dean," Rory warned, but Sam was already seeing red._

 _Jess shoved Sam's chest, but Sam barely budged. He had half a foot and at least fifty pounds on Jess and even if he hadn't faced off with any monsters as of late, Sam would still bet that he knew how to fight better than Jess did._

" _Watch it, Sasquatch," Jess spat. "We were having a conversation. You know, using words. I know that's hard for you."_

" _Jess!" Rory said. "Stop."_

" _She's not talking to you," Sam said, his voice tight._

" _You get to decide that for her then, huh?" Jess asked. "Why not just conk her on the head and take her back to your cave?"_

" _Just go, dude," Sam said. "She doesn't want to talk to you."_

" _I think she does," Jess said, sliding his arm across Rory's shoulders. "In fact-," Jess's taunt was cut off by Sam's fist into his jaw._

"No wonder you liked this chick, she was a bigger nerd," Dean said, pulling books off of Rory's shelves at random. "Better music taste though."

"Just look, would you?" Sam said. He could feel his stomach churning as he looked around Rory's old room. He spent a lot of time in this room. It looked much like it had when he had been there last. She still had the same old twin bed. He remembered that well too.

"I'm gonna wager a guess and say she went to Yale," Dean asked, pointing his thumb over his shoulder at the bulletin board covered in blue flags.

"She was shooting for Harvard."

"Stanford wasn't for her then?" Dean said. "You two dorks could've had a good time there together."

"Stanford?" Lorelai said, stepping into the room. Sam had thought she had been in the living room on the phone, but clearly she had finally been able to shake her mother. "Sorry, I wasn't trying to eavesdrop but… well, yeah, I was. Did he say you went to Stanford?"

"He's joking," Sam covered quickly.

"Right. Our Deano never was much for studying," Dean said.

"No, not really," Lorelai laughed slightly. "Did you end up going to school, though?"

"Yeah, a community college in Chicago," Sam lied.

"Good. That's good. Rory really wanted you to."

"Yeah, I remember," Sam smiled sadly. "She gave me plenty of brochures."

"You know how she gets," Lorelai said. The phone rang in the living room, making Lorelai roll her eyes. "Sorry, that'll be my mother again."

Dean waited until he heard her voice in the next room to be sure she couldn't overhear again. "So not only did you steal my name, but my school work ethic?"

"You didn't go to community college," Sam offered.

"Don't be cute," Dean said, turning back to his sifting through Rory's book shelf. "So what? You slacked off in school for two years?"

"You think I got a full ride to Stanford by calling it in my senior year? I still did well in school, I just...didn't let Rory know that," Sam said sheepishly.

Dean smirked proudly at his younger brother. "You played dumb to get the girl, didn't you? The old I need a tutor routine, you dog."

"Sixteen," Sam reminded.

"Take the compliment," Dean said. "Especially since you look like this."

Sam looked back to Dean, seeing a photo strip identical to the one Sam had had until the fire in his and Jessica's apartment. "Where'd you find that?" Sam asked, clearing his throat loudly.

"Looks like she stashed a bunch in here," Dean said, stepping over to Sam to show him the book he had in his hand. It was an old Maya Angelou that Sam was almost positive that Rory had lent him. "A little collection of exes, I guess." Sam felt anger boil in his throat as he saw a few more pictures of himself with Rory along with several with her and Jess.

"Yeah, I guess she dated Jess after I left," Sam said, his voice dripping in venom. He hadn't realized how angry about it he still was, even after all this time.

"Wait, Jess?" Dean asked. Sam nodded. "I thought her dad said that was his nephew? What kind of flowers were in this attic?"

"Luke's Rory's step dad," Sam said. "No blood relation. Jess came to live with Luke our junior year and proceeded to be a massive tool the whole time."

"And you punched the kid 'cause he stole your girl?" Dean asked, shaking his head. "I'm liking the me version of you better and better."

"I punched him because Rory told me he had been bothering her," Sam explained. "I didn't realize she had just been covering her ass until I found out she cheated on me with him."

"Damn," Dean whistled. "Whole lot of drama in this tiny ass town."

"Tell me about it," Sam said.

"You schoolhouse rumbling James Dean aside, I'm not finding anything in here that would make me think she's been fooling around with demons or witchcraft."

"Lorelai said she's been pretty nomadic since she graduated," Sam said. "It could be somewhere else."

"Well, you knew her, did she seem like the type?"

Sam shook his head. "Not at all."

"What about the other girl, Michaela Rogers?" Dean asked. "Did you know her at all?"

"It was a really small town. She was a few grades behind me, I saw her in the halls, but I didn't really know her all that well."

"Oh god," Lorelai said from the living room. Sam heard her clumsily hang up the phone as he and Dean came out to see what was going on. "Perfect timing, really," she said as she spotted them. She nodded out the front window, to the motorcycle in the driveway.

"Great," Sam mumbled, knowing who the bike belonged to before the rider even took off his helmet.


	5. Chapter 5

"It's good to see you, Jess," Lorelai said, pulling her nephew into a hug that Sam was surprised he returned. The last time he had seen Lorelai, she hadn't been Jess's biggest fan. But Sam had been gone for quite a long time now. "Luke went to talk to the Hartford police again. He said he wasn't going to worry you just yet."

As they pulled apart, Jess spotted Sam and Dean on the porch. Jess placed his helmet on the seat of the bike. He looked much like he had in high school, only with shaggier hair and a scruffy face. He didn't seem surprised to see Sam, but Jess was always good at hiding his emotions beneath layers of snark and cynicism.

"I'd say you got big, but I really can't tell," Jess said.

"Maybe you just shrunk," Sam said, crossing his arms. He could feel Dean looking at him. They both knew Sam wasn't usually the confrontational type, but Sam had been a different person in the couple of years he spent in Stars Hollow.

"What are you doing here, Paul Bunyan?" Jess asked.

"Jess, play nice," Lorelai warned. "Dean heard about Rory too."

"So?" Jess asked, not taking his eyes off Sam.

"So I figured I could lend a hand," Sam said. "Why are you here?"

"Maybe because I've actually talked to her in the last ten years unlike some people," Jess said.

"Oh, I'm sure you were really broken up when I left. Sorry that I didn't stop by the Walmart and say goodbye."

"I didn't mind at all," Jess said. "Rory didn't really either. She was preoccupied."

"Why don't you two just pee on her?" Dean said. "As much as I'm enjoying this dick measuring contest, we have more pressing matters."

"And who are you?" Jess asked, quirking an eyebrow at Dean.

"Bobby, he's Dean's cousin," Lorelai explained. "He's a private investigator. He said he's solved hundreds of missing person cases, ones the police couldn't even solve." Sam's heart ached hearing the sad hopefulness in Lorelai's voice. Lorelai had been like a mother to him, always saving him a plate and a spot on the couch for movie nights. He was almost embarrassed to admit that, when he and Rory broke up, one of the first things he thought about was how much he would miss her mother.

Jess laughed bitterly. Sam was surprised that he didn't say anything classically cynical and rude but maybe Jess had grown up. Or maybe even he wasn't enough of an asshole to dash any hope his aunt had.

"How about I make you a cup of coffee?" Lorelai asked, patting Jess's arm gently. "I could use another cup."

Lorelai disappeared into the little house once again. "Is that even possible?" Dean asked, almost under his breath.

"Yes," Jess and Sam said in unison. Dean's eyebrows shot up as he tucked his hands into his pockets and followed Lorelai in.

"Didn't think I'd see you here again," Jess said as soon as Dean was out of sight. Sam laughed slightly.

"More like you're glad I got ghost," Sam said. Jess shrugged.

"Can't say I missed you."

"Of course you didn't," Sam said. "You were busy weaseling your way into my girlfriend's pants." Sam couldn't even believe the words coming out of his mouth. He sounded like he was back in high school again. He almost expected Rory to show up and put her hand on their chests to push them apart.

"Why are you here, Forester, really?" Jess asked, stepping closer to him, as if he didn't want any chance of Lorelai hearing. "What's your deal?"

"What's yours?" Sam shot back.

"Rory's still my friend. You haven't talked to her since you left."

"Because we were eighteen and she dumped me for you," Sam said. "It's not a crime to leave town. She's missing, maybe my pride isn't that important if I can help."

"How'd you know she was missing?" Jess asked. "She lives with my uncle and I didn't even know until this morning."

"Like Lorelai said, my cousin's a PI, he's got police connections. He recognized her name and told me about it," Sam said. "How'd you find out if Luke didn't tell you?"

"I have connections too."

"Last I checked you were Kerouac-ing up and down the east coast," Sam scoffed. Sam failed to bring up that he had also been drifting around the country. "What connections do you have?"

Jess shook his head, pushing past Sam to get into the house. Sam resisted the urge to shove Jess off the stairs. He knew he could and the version of him that lived in Stars Hollow would have. He liked to think he had grown up and matured, that he wouldn't do something like that anymore but Jess really brought the petty, high school bullshit out of him.

Jess disappeared into the house, passing Dean as he came back out, holding a styrofoam cup. He looked over his shoulder at Jess, shaking his head as he came back to Sam.

"Kinda see why you clocked that kid," Dean said. "Lorelai said we could have a room at her inn, we should set up there."

"Are we sure this is something?" Sam asked, still looking at the door as if he could see what Jess was up to.

"You think he has something to do with it?" Dean asked, taking a sip of his coffee.

"I don't know what I think," Sam said honestly. "He's a dick and he pulled some shit at a party when we were kids, but I didn't think he would ever seriously hurt her. If I did, I would've done a lot more than punch him."

"You're pretty protective of a girl who dumped your ass for some Breakfast Club reject," Dean said. He looked over his shoulder, back at the house before ducking to pop open the seat of Jess' bike.

"We were just teenagers. Yeah, it sucked back then, but it's been ten years," Sam said. "What are you looking for?"

"You said you didn't really know the other missing girl, right?"

"She was younger than me, I think we maybe had art together my first year here," Sam said.

"You know if Jess knew her?"

"Not that I saw. Jess dated a few girls who were as wrong side of the tracks as you could get in Stars Hollow, but I'm pretty sure Michaela lead Bible Study, so I doubt it."

"And if he only came here for Rory," Dean said, pulling out a picture Sam recognized as Michaela Rogers, albeit slightly older than he remembered her as. "Why's he got this in here?"


	6. Chapter 6

_This wasn't like him at all. Well, Sam hadn't really acted like himself in two years, but still. Sam didn't really like to go to parties. He didn't really like crowds, even if the Stars Hollow crowds were small. He drank with his friends out in a field once in a while, a rite of passage for any small town teenage boy, but he didn't really enjoy the taste of cheap whiskey that his friends' parents wouldn't miss from the liquor cabinet. But now, he chugged from his red solo cup like it was the last drink he would ever get. Now that he was leaving the next day, he supposed it would be the last drink he had, at least in Stars Hollow._

" _Dude, slow down," Kyle laughed, despite being two drinks deeper than Sam already. Kyle always got way drunker, way faster than anyone. Maybe because he was smaller, maybe because he guzzled beers like water._

 _Sam finished off the last of his drink, tossing his cup into a garbage bag at the bottom of the steps. He was ready for a third cup, but a door slam from upstairs gave him pause. His stomach lurched as he saw Rory storm down the hall. He had come here tonight as a final farewell, but also to escape his own thoughts. Rory had broken up with him suddenly a few days ago. He had hoped to convince her to give him another chance when he learned yesterday from a concerned Lorelai that Rory had kissed Jess before Sam had any idea that he and Rory were over. Maybe that's why it was so easy for him to pack his bag to leave when Dean called him earlier._

 _But now, as Rory moved quickly down the steps, Sam couldn't find it in himself to be angry at her. She held her arms tightly around herself as tears ran down her face. Sam didn't stop to think about that fact that she cheated on him or that she had dumped him, he just held his hand out, stopping her before she could reach the bottom of the steps._

" _What's wrong?" He asked her over the music. Rory shook her head, not looking at Sam. "Rory, come on." He urged._

" _Of course, you're here to the rescue," Jess said from the top of the stairs. He climbed down, shouldering past Sam with his hands in his pockets, aloof as always. It didn't take much for Sam to put two and two together._

" _Hey, asshole," Sam said, despite Rory trying to pull him back._

" _What?" Jess said. "What are you gonna do, Sasquach? Hit me again?"_

" _Not a bad idea."_

The inn was a lot nicer than the crappy, no star motels they had to stay in normally. Sam remembered how Lorelai used to talk about the Dragonfly Inn. She wanted nothing more than to fix it up and now she had, Sam was kind of proud of her.

"Alright, thanks, Garth," Dean said, hanging up the phone.

"Anything?" Sam asked.

"Garth checked, Jess doesn't have a record, just a hell of a lot of unpaid parking tickets," Dean said.

"So he could just be good at covering his tracks," Sam said. "It doesn't make sense that he would be here without Luke telling him about Rory."

"I know, Sammy, I know," Dean said, holding his hands up. "I'm not defending the guy, I'm just telling you what Garth told me. Besides, I thought you said you didn't think he would really hurt your girl."

"That was before I found out he was stashing a picture of the other missing girl."

"He's definitely high on my Sketchy Subjects list, but he didn't seem like any sort of monster to me."

"This town isn't known for its paranormal activity, Dean," Sam explained, sitting down on the edge of the carefully made bed. "I was here for almost two years without so much as a cold spot. I think Jess could just be a run of the mill psycho."

"I'll take your word for it, but we both gotta admit you're a little biased."

"It was ten years ago, Dean," Sam said. "I'm over it."

"Sounds exactly like something someone who wasn't over it would say," Dean shrugged. Sam rolled his eyes.

"She was my first real girlfriend, so yeah, I'm still a little bit upset about it, but I don't let it get to me. I left after that anyways."

"It's not like she knew who you were anyways, the whole thing was a lie."

Sam didn't like how Dean's words hit him. He had never thought of it that way. Sure, Sam lied about his name and his school work, and maybe about his reading habits, but he didn't feel like he was playing a part for Rory. He always told her how he felt, he was always honest with her about that, and that felt more important than telling her about his past. But now that he thought about it, how could he have expected her to tell him the truth when he didn't even tell her his name.

"Yeah," Sam said softly. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Dean grabbed Sam's shoulder, pausing deadly still as if listening for something. "Did you hear that?" He asked. He went to the window, looking out at the darkened sky outside.

"Hear what?"

"That noise," Dean said.

"Dean, I told you, nothing supernatural happens in this town. They don't get the bumps in the night that we're used to. It's probably a raccoon or something."

"Except that two girls have gone missing without a trace," Dean said, grabbing his gun and tucking one of their silver knives into his waistband. "Come on."

Sam couldn't argue with him and had no intention of trying. He grabbed his own gun and followed his brother out the door and down the hall.

"It was outside," Dean whispered back to Sam, leading them out the front door. No one was in the front room, all the other patrons had gone to their rooms for the night. He hoped Sookie had gone home already; he didn't want to explain to her why he had a gun.

They walked along the porch, down the path towards the barn. Sam was about to tell Dean that maybe he was being paranoid when he heard the distinct squelch of a knife through flesh and bone.

The boys broke into a run, heading for the barn as fast as they could. Sam readied his gun as Dean kicked the door open.

Sam felt his jaw drop at the scene before him. Jess, his shirt slashed, stood with a machete in his hands, splattered with blood. The body at his feet was decapitated, the head a few feet away.

Sam kept his gun trained on Jess as Dean stepped forward, nudging the head with the toe of his boot.

"It's not what you think," Jess said, no hint of his normal sarcasm and malice. "That wasn't a human."

"Yeah, it's a vamp," Dean confirmed, seeing the fangs poking through the corpse's gums.

"You know it's a vampire?" Jess asked, his arm wielding the machete dropping slightly.

"How do you know it's a vampire?" Sam asked. "And how did you know how to kill it?"


	7. Chapter 7

_The alcohol he kept in his bag finally had a better purpose than getting him hammered alone. Jess winced as he wiped the wound down with a whiskey soaked towel on the edge of the motel bathtub. It seemed useless to clean the gash in the same room he was pretty sure a family of rodents lived in. The cashier at the gas station was a guy barely in his twenties who couldn't be bothered to look up from his phone long enough to notice that Jess handed him a wad of blood stained bills to pay for the gauze. Jess knew he should have just found a drug store, or by the severity of the gash in his side or the bite on his shoulder, a hospital, but he was too shell shocked from what happened._

 _He had gone home with a girl like he had done a hundred times before. He was the type of guy women were warned to look out for, lest they end up on an episode of Dateline. He was a drifter, he came and went out of towns in the span of a week on his motorcycle. Of course, he knew he wasn't dangerous, but he also thought he would never have anything more than a jealous husband to fear. He never thought he had to worry about the girl jumping on him and tearing into him with her teeth like a wild animal. And not in the way that he liked._

 _The gash on his side wasn't even from the crazed girl. That came from the man who saved Jess from getting his throat ripped out. It all happened so fast Jess didn't even realize he had left the girl's apartment until he was on his bike and bolting off with blood staining his pants and what was left of his shirt. He remembered the man busting the door down, swinging an axe and telling Jess to get down. The gash came when the man swung and missed, catching Jess' stomach instead of the girl's head like he was aiming for._

 _Jess couldn't see the bite mark on his shoulder, but he could feel that the bandage was already soaked through with blood. He peeled the soiled gauze off, throwing it into the trash can by the toilet. He would have to remember to leave a big tip for the maid._

" _Let me in!"_

 _Jess toppled back into the empty bathtub in surprise, cursing as his head slammed against the tiled wall. For a split second, he was afraid the crazed girl had managed to find him to try and finish the job, but he realized it was a man's voice. The man with the axe. He wasn't sure that was better._

 _The man pounded on the door. Jess hauled himself up, grabbing the toilet to keep steady as he held his bloodied side. "Come on, man, I can help." Jess was sure he would regret opening the door to a stranger who had cut him open not an hour ago, but he also knew he didn't have many options if he didn't want to bleed out._

 _Jess was greeted with a knife pressed against his throat. He would have rolled his eyes at his own stupid decision if he had the energy. He stared the man down. He had wild intensity behind his dark eyes, but he didn't seem crazy._

" _She bit you?" The man asked._

 _Jess nodded, feeling the knife rub dangerously close but never cutting him. The man knew what he was doing, clearly. The missed swing was a mistake Jess was sure the man wouldn't normally make._

" _Did you drink her blood?"_

" _Do I look like a vampire to you?" Jess asked sarcastically._

 _The man looked him up and down. He pulled his knife away, stepping into the motel room. "You dress like one," He said. "But you would've healed by now if you were a vampire." He nodded to Jess' side._

" _By now? You hit me with an axe," Jess said._

" _I saved your life," The man said. "That vamp bitch was going to make you her snack pack. You're a good looking guy, you couldn't have found a girl a little less, I don't know, blood sucking?"_

" _You're insane," Jess said, taking a step back. He knew he lost a lot of blood, but Jess wasn't sure the man's help would be worth it._

" _You've seen movies, I'm sure you know the basics." The man ignored Jess' apprehension. He pushed Jess rather gently into the armchair by the bed. The man pulled his own first aid kit from his bag. "Fangs, nocturnal, that's all true. You're lucky she was just hungry. If she turned you, you'd be just as dead she is now."_

" _You're talking about vampires," Jess said, mostly to try to remind himself of where this conversation was going. "You're insane," He repeated._

" _A lady just took a chunk out of you and you think I'm crazy?" The man's bag had better supplies than Jess had found at the gas station, a suturing kit and real bandages._

" _She's insane too."_

" _You've got a lot to learn," The man said. "If you're gonna go around letting yourself be an easy target for vamps, you've gotta at least know how to defend yourself, kid."_

" _Don't call me kid," Jess said. The man chuckled as he cleaned Jess' gash with proper rubbing alcohol._

" _What's your name then?"_

" _Jess."_

" _Nice to meet you, Jess," the man said. "I'm Gordon."_

"Watch where you're pointing that thing, Paul Bunyan," Jess said, staring at the gun that Sam still had angled at him from where he sat on the bed. Jess still managed to look aloof in the armchair even covered in blood from the vamp.

"You better start talking," Sam said, leaning forward.

"The way I see it, Forester, you have just as much explaining to do," Jess said. He may have been shocked to see the brothers in the barn, but that quickly faded to anger and annoyance at being manhandled by them. "How's a guy like you know about vampires? Aren't you just a small town mechanic?"

Dean snorted from behind Sam, despite the seriousness of the situation. It seemed like the lies Sam told had no end. Sam shot him a quick look.

"There's a lot you don't know about me," Sam said. "But that's not what we're talking about. How long have you been a hunter?"

Jess scoffed, rolling his eyes and shaking his head. "Please, I don't do pick ups and orange vests."

"Hunting, slaying, who cares what you call it, Sarah Michelle," Dean said, his arms crossed. "Why were you killing a vamp in the barn?"

"Would you rather me let it run around killing everyone?" Jess asked.

"Cut the shit, Jess," Sam said, holding the gun with a bit more purpose than before. "How do you know how to kill a vampire?"

"Why do you?" Sam knew arguing wouldn't solve anything with Jess. He moved the gun from Jess' chest to his groin, raising his eyebrows with threatening question. Jess' jaw tightened but he relented. "I've been doing it for about seven years. Killed around a hundred."

"Just decided to pick up a hatchet and start decapitating?" Dean asked. Jess rolled his eyes again, pulling the collar of his blood stained t shirt down, showing his bare shoulder. Dean and Sam leaned in to look at the four ragged scars on his skin.

"You were attacked by a vamp," Dean said.

Jess righted his shirt and leaned back in the chair. "Would've been dinner, but a guy busted up the place and saved me. I spent about a month traveling with him before I went out on my own."

"So you are a hunter," Sam said.

"If that's what you want to call it," Jess shrugged. "Your turn."

Sam sighed, finally putting the gun down on the bed next to him. "Since I was a kid, we were raised hunters."

"Good old Randy taught you to ice vampires?" Jess asked, eyebrows raised.

Sam felt his chest tighten. This was much more complicated than he ever wanted this situation to get. "Just tell him," Dean said, as if reading his mind. Sam looked up at his brother. He knew Dean had no problem with lying; it was a main part of their job. But there was no use lying to someone if they were going to be of any use to them, as much as Sam hated to admit that they could use Jess' help.

"May and Randy weren't my parents. I'm not a mechanic, I'm a hunter. This is…," Sam looked at Dean again, hoping there would be an easier way to explain this and it would come to him in the next .5 seconds. Dean nodded. "This is my brother, Dean. My name is Sam."

Jess' eyes went wide with recognition, standing up from the chair. Sam picked up the gun again in defense. "Sam and Dean? Winchester?"

"Clearly you've heard of us," Dean said.

"You bastards killed Gordon Walker."


End file.
